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Photo: Olivia Froehlich

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Erdem

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Dolce & Gabbana

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Fendi

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Theyskens

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Christopher Kane

Photo: Courtesy of Christopher Kane

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When you consider just how much chiffon and gossamer silk showed up on the runway for spring, getting a clear picture of the season is pretty easy—at least in the most literal sense. Having started her career when sheer dressing was at all-time high visibility back in the ’90s, Helena Christensen finds this idea not entirely new. A random Google image search of the Danish supermodel throws up everything from Ab Fab–era fishnet body stockings loaded with pearls at Chanel to a smoldering transparent skirt suit trimmed with marabou feathers at Dolce & Gabbana circa 1995. “I’ve walked down the runway looking virtually naked,” she says laughing. “I remember wearing a completely sheer piece at Alessandro Dell’Acqua right after giving birth to my son. That seems so crazy now!”

As a guest designer for European lingerie giant Triumph, Christensen is better equipped than ever to take those barely there ensembles out into the light of day. “I think women tend to split up their lingerie drawer into two parts: There’s the really beautiful side that’s nice to look at but not practical, and then the functional stuff that you actually wear,” she says. “I wanted to figure out a way to bring those elements together.” Her first pieces for the label, available now, include gently supportive embroidered mesh bralettes and low-slung lace briefs that are as comfortable as they are pretty. For spring, she’s created figure-enhancing 1950s-style bodysuits in blush and aqua tones that are frankly too good to hide—and not an overstuffed push-up in sight. “I’ve been wearing long vintage nightgowns since I was a teenager, but they’re so sheer that when you stand in a certain light they’re completely transparent,” she says. “Now I have the solution for that look.”

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Photo: Helena Christensen

So, given her recently acquired expertise in underpinnings, how would Christensen style the pretty translucent layers of the season? Here, her five rules for sheer dressing from the inside out.

With ultra romantic sheer dresses like those at Erdem and Dolce & Gabbana, less is more: “I think there’s something so delicate and innocent in pieces like this that you don’t want to interrupt the intricate handwork on the surface. Flesh-tone underpinnings would work best here.”

Silhouette is key when it comes to finding an underpinning for a see-through skirt like those at Fendi: “I like the idea of a high-waisted fifties boy short with a skirt like this, or even a one-piece bodysuit. Throwing on a heavy sweater over the look, nineties-style, is a nice way to balance things out, too.”

Playing with color will take Theyskens’ Theory’s sheer slip up a notch: “I like the idea of adding a pop of neon color to a see-through slip by wearing lingerie in a completely contrasting hue.”

Don’t be afraid to layer up: “I wear my favorite lace blouse by Julie Fagerholt for Heartmade with several pieces underneath, including a sheer embellished bodysuit from my fall collection. Putting a colorful bra under an unlined lace one, for example, brings something new to the look.”

The smallest details make all the difference: “I find the shoulder to be the most attractive part of a woman’s body, which is why I always pay attention to the strap on a bra, even if I’m not wearing something sheer. I love seeing just a hint of a pretty strap peeking out from an oversize V-neck sweater, for example.”